customline

Late to the party, I am glad I found this now. I think the body mods are really well conceived and executed. I love it!

Tires look great, Len. I think the rear mount would look pretty normal on any woody. Be sure to drill out the hub and lugs ?. Would you rather have a wingtip bumper on the back to match the front? I've got a bunch of 'em.

Rick, it sounds like your dad was a lot like mine. One day I dragged home a '56 four door Bel Air hardtop. It had a 265 with a Holley quad that some kid installed on it. I paid $90.00 for it so you can imagine. It didn't grace his driveway for more than a week. Gotta love the roofline on it. The floors were pretty much gone, though. He was doing me a favor.

Thanks, Dave, I was aware of Greg's '55 and seeing his build sorta got me motivated to pick up my razor saw. It surprised me to find out about the roof provided in his kit. I wouldn't have used it because I wanted to preserve the Nomad look as much as possible ( and I don't have one anyway) Seeing his build now, I think it would have kept much of the look by virtue of the angle of the B pillar. It seems to work quite well. When I looked for examples of phantom "El Nomads" I ran across the one at the top of this page. BiNGO! It was exactly what I had in mind. In the photo, it looks like the builder used a second tailgate to create the wall below the backlight, chrome trim and all! Well, I'm not doing that ?. It would eat up too much valuable real estate. After the rear fender wells are added, there ain't much floor space. If I used the rear portion of my interior to make a bed, you might have trouble putting a small cooler and a tackle box back there. Greg, you are spot on about the loss of bed area but I have tried to minimize it. The limiting factor is the kit glass; it dictates where the rear roof section goes. The wall below the backlight became a big player also. Where these things ended up is product of some compromises but esthetics is always in play. I think I have all that well in hand now. Some may not agree but I'm happy with it. Thanks for checking in, guys.

Falfa drove a '55, not a '57! That tells you something. I had the same thought on a '56 Nomad, but plans always seem to wander off course. These Monogram kits are kinda crappy- I don't know what I'm going to do with that ?? firewall. I'm looking for ideas on that...maybe a smooth chrome panel. It's not a fully formed plan ? I don't think I could even sit in a Ranchero, Len. I drive with my seat reclined more than some people would consider safe (like Wifey, for example ?) so when I ran across my "inspiration" photo, I knew I wasn't alone. An extended cab Elco! What a great idea! I just hope I can get it past paint; I keep stumbling there. The bed is going to be quite a problem if I get any orange peel. I've got to find better wheels too. Lots of work ahead on this one.

Thanks, Bob, I hope you're right! ?

On the '57 hood, Alan...agreed. This one is going smooth. To me, though, the '55 is "boxier" by virtue of the broad-faced hood and egg-crate grille which suggest a simple utilitarian function and reminds me of Nash-Ramblers. The '56 parking lights seem to extend the sleeker grille-work to full width. I also prefer the Bel Air side trim of the '56 and the four door hardtop is pretty darn cool.. I always got a kick out of the gas filler, too ....but I prefer the '55 in dragstrip dress over the '56 for sure. Shaved of side trim with radiused rears and a chrome tube axle you can't beat a 210 coupe for a gasser, IMHO.

Thanks, Trevor. '55s are great hot rod material. For '57, I think of Ford, more as a cruiser than a hot rod.....but also as a rust bucket. ?

Just a bit more.... I have an endless supply of those ^^^....one benefit of advanced age ?

Whattaya think about the space-cab? How about shaving the ugly-a$$ hood? ? glad you like it!

I bought this kit, I dunno, like 15 years ago and almost immediately envisioned turning it into a phantom El Camino. I realized then that I didn't possess the skills at a high enough level to accomplish it. I still don't, but I'm not getting any younger so here goes ?. This is the inspiration: I like the extra room idea. El Caminos seem a bit cramped with so little space behind the seat. It seems the builder of the above "El Nomado" had found a way to make that extra space. The Monogram '57 NOMAD, as you probably know, is not a great kit. I like the fuelly set-up but I may elect to drop in a 409 because I have a few sitting around. The body has some issues but no deal breakers. The roof, though, is too flat and in fact a bit concave over the front seat area. That was the first ? I needed to deal with. I added two layers of .010 to give me a guide for subsequent bondo work. Note to self: get contour guage. I won't bore you with all the details unless you want them but have a look at what I have so far and feel free to comment, chastise, commiserate, or chuckle. I can take it! OK, this is going to push me a little: the kit interior is of absolutely no help to address the bed- it's all scratch work. More on that later. It may not be useful to know but the '57 is my least favorite tri-five. In fact, it is probably my least favorite Chevrolet. It's nothing personal. They are just way too ubiquitous and unreservedly revered. I know, take your shots, but the '56 is a much better looking car in my mind. I even like the '59 more ?Anyway, the hood on the '57 makes me wonder what they were thinking. You can see below what I'm thinking:

I hope you stick with those rims, Mike!

Yes, of course! Why didn't I think of that? Well, in my defense, this is my first Model A with fenders, but next time....well, next time the fenders stay in the box, dammmitt!! ?

Thanks, Dave. Its a home-built hot rod and it's street driven so it's got to be legal. I covered that issue okay but I can't recall ever seeing a tail pipe anchored to a running board either in photos or at shows. The exit location would cover safety standards in most cases. Maybe I over-think this stuff too much. ?.

I would like to confirm everything that Pete said and add my $00.02: consider ambient temperature because it affects the pressure of the propellant. I decanted an almost-full can of Extreme Lacquer recently at around 90 F into a 8 oz. Ball jar, left the lid loose for a few hours then capped it tight and it stayed in the summer heat over night. The following day, I checked it to see if there was still pressure and there was a small release when I carefully cracked it open. Also, if you are intent on emptying a full can, you may need to warm (not "heat") up the can once or twice as the can cools and you notice the pressure dropping off. I use a hair dryer for that. I also use a pistol-grip thingie on the Testor's cans. It keeps my fingers free of paint and enables me to push the valve down which I could not do otherwise . Very helpful ? The first time I decanted, I used a very small jar and capped it tight immediately. I got a big surprise when I opened it later. The paint foamed out of the jar and all over me. I should have known better. ?

Thanks, Bob. I would hate to bust another Starliner. It's good to have some choices. Good info!

Has anyone used the AMT '58 Edsel chassis/floor pan to upgrade other AMT screw-bottom Ford/Mercury kits? Inquiring minds want to know. ?....and how does it compare to the Starliner setup?

....but the ends of the u-bolts and nuts and washers would be staring you in the face. ?. The brackets could easily be mig welded without any serious damage on the top side except for some burnt paint. It's just that it seems a bit gaffey ?. I think our imaginary teen builder wouldn't see it that way though. He got tired of hearing the pipes slapping the boards driving on the bumpy pot-holed roads in New England back in '55 (gotta keep up the narrative ?)

Bolted through the boards? Oh the horror....?

Don't encourage him, Alan ?

Thanks for the video, Len....very inspirational! ?

I appreciate your concern for the little 'Bird but it's going to be weeks (or months maybe) in the purple pond. I could try to wet-sand the whole body back down but I'd rather spend my time getting other stuff done right now. I started a new project that I'll be posting soon but I'm trying to push the '29 through. The 'Bird will return one day....or maybe it will end up on Ebay. ?

I don't know if the running boards are a very proper place to anchor the pipes but it seemed like maybe one could get away with it. The hangers would necessarily have to be welded to the bottom of the boards. Right?....it could work ?

Here's a few shots just so you don't think I'm getting lazy ( I am, but I don't want anyone to know that...) there's not much of a channel for the glass to sit in. I spread a thin layer of epoxy then thought I should clean the "glass" with ipa. By the time I was ready to lay the glass in place, the epoxy was almost (I hope) too far along to stick. The up-top is almost done, it just needs a bit more detail. The exhaust was easy, the mufflers are parts box items and the tail pipes are aluminum, mounted to the underside of the running boards with hangers made from molotow painted evergreen angle. Gotta find some '39 tail lights now. Thanks for looking in.

Thanks, Alan. I've been trying to wrap this one up all weekend. Almost there....